I would have never thought seeing Microsoft's search engine and maps on a Google open source operating system, all in a Motorola cocktail. It is quite the mix and I bet there will be no incompatibilities between these two pieces of software. Not to mention the confusion Motorola will spread among Chinese users. But the company says that it is all done for increased customization options available on mobile phones.

"We believe that consumer choice is one of the most critical components to ensuring a rich and seamless client experience," said Christy Wyatt, corporate vice president of software and services, Motorola Mobile Devices. "Motorola and Microsoft have enjoyed a longstanding collaboration and the addition of Bing services to our Android-based smartphones in China is another important step in empowering our end-users."

Starting with Q1, China will have some new smartphones available with a pre-loaded Bing bookmark, which will allow future users to set their favorite search or maps engine. The already marketed Motorola gadgets will receive over-the-air updates to include Microsoft's proprietary service.

"Mobile devices continue to be a critical place for customers to access location-based services such as local search and mapping," stated Yusuf Mehdi, senior vice president of the Online Services Division at Microsoft. "We are pleased to expand our long-standing relationship with Motorola to bring powerful Bing location-based services to Motorola's innovative new mobile devices, providing consumers with more choice and flexibility in mobile search."

This "silent war," as I like to call it, will not make victims among us consumers because of the fact that Motorola at least gives you the possibility to choose between the two major internet services. Well, at least one is major. Soon, there will be more mobile phone companies accepting Microsoft's offer and maybe one day, there will be a real competition between these two internet services. That's what the Redmond-based company is aiming for anyway.


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